Beautiful Spring!

Another great week, sunny, warm, interesting creatures everywhere! I've got so much to show you folks.

I'll start off with some birds I bagged during a walk through my birding patch. Below is a Green Bee-eater.

Green Bee-eater, Merops orientalis

This is a White-bellied Drongo.

White-bellied Drongo (Dicrurus caerulescens) 

 I captured this Indian Pond Heron on the way back

These beautiful bugs were abundant in the birding patch too. Any idea what they are?

Let's see what's been going on in the garden. A couple of Brown-headed Barbets  have nested again in the breadfruit tree.


Brown-headed Barbet (Megalaima zeylanica)

Black-hooded orioles have been very active too.



Black-hooded Oriole, Oriolus xanthornus

Last, but not least, a White-throated Kingfisher.


White-throated Kingfisher (Halcyon smyrnensis)

This iridescent green bug was on  a lime plant in the garden. Again, ID?

This cute little bug was on one of my been plants. I have absolutely no idea as to the ID of that either.

Well, so ends this week's Wild Sri Lanka episode, hope you folks would enjoy. I'm gonna go for another walk through the birding patch, leaving early in the morning tomorrow. Should I bag anything interesting, I'll post here on next Friday,  stay tuned!



Posted for Camera Critters, Macro Monday, World Bird Wednesday.

I Feel Good..!

Hello folks, how are you? This week has been the very opposite of the last, being sunny and hot. I was able to bag some really interesting critters to show you.





I'll start off with the birds. The tiny one you see below was completely new to me. Does any one know what that little bird is? 
   



















And here is a Red-vented bulbul perched on the TV antenna.

Red-vented Bulbul (Pycnonotus cafer)

This one is a female Asian Koel.


Asian Koel (Eudynamys scolopaceus )

A female Purple-rumped sunbird is in the bag too.


Purple-rumped Sunbird (Leptocoma zeylonica)

This Boulenger's Bronzeback snake used to come to a   Citrus tree in the garden every day and lay still on a branch for hours, but it has been absent for two days now.


 Boulenger's BronzebackBronzeback,Dendrelaphis bifrenalis

This Oriental garden lizard was on the trunk of a mango tree in the garden next door.


Oriental Garden Lizard(Calotes versicolor)

I also photographed and filmed a millipede, a considerably  big specimen for this area.

This orb Weaver that I asw in the gardening was really small. Can any body provide me with the species name please?


Agriope sp

This Peacock Pansy was filmed in the garden today.




I didn't know that Weaver ants were such interesting creatures till  a local news paper published an article about them  recently. visit this link and see for yourself.

Weaver ant (Oecophylla smaragdina)

I saw a bug dragging a spider way too bigger, as I was working on one of my vegetable plants in the garden. I don't know weather the bug killed the spider or it just came across the carcass,    but I think the latter is more likely.



There are some caterpillars on my Winged bean plants . They don't do much damage to the plants, and I'm waiting to see what they develop in to.

Okay, that's about it, hope you would enjoy. Stay tuned, and wish me luck, I'll be posting again next Friday. Ciao!

Posted for Camera Critters, Macro Monday, World Bird Wednesday. 

Oriole, Bulbul, ETC......

Hi everybody what's been going on in your part of the world? It's definitely spring here, with a fair amount of rain, which is typical of this time of the year.

Black-hooded oriole is a species of bird that has really tested my nerves when it comes to photographing them. This week I managed to get some barely presentable shots of one, and it did give me a run round   my and  a neighbor's gardens.

Black-hooded Oriole, Oriolus xanthornus

Below are the other birds I managed to capture.

Red-vented Bulbul (Pycnonotus cafer)

 Yellow-billed Babbler, Turdoides affinis

I also photographed  a female Common Mormon butterfly and  a gecko, which has to be Spotted House Gecko (Hemidactylus brookii parvimaculatus),  according to what Bushana says here, and caterpillar 
that I couldn't place.



female Common Mormon,  Papilio polytes

Spotted House Gecko (Hemidactylus brookii parvimaculatus)

 

Posted for Camera critters, Macro Monday, Best Posts and World Bird Wednesday.

The Uninvited Guest And The other Critters........

Last night there was this small snake just outside the house, slithering close to a wall. I trapped it in a bottle and released it in to a  block of land that has been left unattended for so long. I couldn't get any decent photos of it as my wife was freaking out while I handled it. I will upload the images to Lakdasun forum for possible identification.

This Common Lime butterfly was by the driveway when I took my little girl for walk last evening.


Common Lime butterfly,    Papilio demoleus

This beautiful beetle was on the bird feeder bowl yesterday morning. Do check the video out, I think it turned out nicely.

 


Birding has not been very good this week, I've only got a House Craw to show you guys. May be better luck next week, so stay tuned, I'll probably be posting in next Friday again.

House Crow (Corvus splendens)

Posted for Macro Monday , Camera Critters, and World Bird Wednesday.



P.S.- My friend Bushana  at Lakdasun has identified the snake to be Russel's Kukri Snake,(Oligodon taeniolatus ceylonicus), a non venomous endemic sub-species. Thanks Bushana!

Shooti'n Without Killin'..........

Hi all, how's it goin? You must have noticed that I don't blog as regularly I used to, but It's just a temporary drawback, things will get back in form soon. Till then, enjoy these!

Pied Bushchat (Saxicola caprata)

Green Bee-eater, Merops orientalis

Purple Swamphen (Porphyrio porphyrio)

Common Mormon (Papilio polytes)

Tiny Grass Blue (Zizula hylax)